Practice / Playoff Roster Discussion Only!!!

[long distance]

He has functioned in this system at a high level. Britt and Dorsett have not had a season or an off season so reasonably have more to learn. Both have considerable up side, and will likely get an off season to develop. If MM is activated, which has to be a strong possibility or else why designate him, I doubt they release a WR. Either a player goes to IR (e.g., Gillislee) or an end of roster release (Grissom) is more likely in my view.

They might bring up Reilly for Grissom as well..

 

[maineman209]

Given that snaps at practice are a limited resource and at a premium I wonder what the better strategy is. Using those snaps to determine how far away MM still is or using them on a player like Britt so he gets some live action that helps more to catch up than just studying the playbook.

I'm not sure that it's either/or. I'm guessing the Pats are evaluating them side-by-side on similar routes to determine which one may be able to contribute more moving forward from here. It probably doesn't hurt Britt's development to have yet another system-integrated receiver on the field to study and take notes from.

 

[dannydyn]

Mike Reiss‏Verified account @MikeReiss 1h1 hour ago
Asked about Malcolm Mitchell’s progress in his return to practice, Bill Belichick said he still has a lot of ground to make up. “Seen him out there trying to get back into practice and do the things he’s asked to do,” Belichick said.

I'm not trying to read too much into what Bill is saying, but my guess would be that MM isn't going to be active this week.
At this point, I think MM is a luxury.

A good article I was reading this morning said:


Our offense ranks 1st in total yards,
2nd in scoring,
2nd in passing
10th in rushing.

And we've only had Burkhead and Hogan on the field together for full games TWICE this year and MM none. I'd say we should be ok, without MM this week.

Or it's just vintage BB playing mind tricks on the Titans.... let them count on MM not being activated from IR for the game.

 

[luuked]

 

[Chris Stevenson]

They might bring up Reilly for Grissom as well..

I'll be honest. BB cutting Reilly in favor of Grissom is a head scratcher to me. Reilly is the better player, is as good on STs, has 3-4 experience with the Jets and David Harris, and Grissom comes off more like a Jake Bequette draft pick, where BB holds onto the guy, no one can figure out why, and that's the end of if it. lmao

Reilly, I actually like. He's good in space and has decent speed.

Grissom? I can't name one good thing he does.

 

[luuked]

I'm not sure that it's either/or. I'm guessing the Pats are evaluating them side-by-side on similar routes to determine which one may be able to contribute more moving forward from here. It probably doesn't hurt Britt's development to have yet another system-integrated receiver on the field to study and take notes from.

Point is that there are only so many reps you get each practice with your QB1 that are semi-serious. Just by splitting those handful of reps between the two already creates the question for me.

 

[Mack Herron]

I'll be honest. BB cutting Reilly in favor of Grissom is a head scratcher to me. Reilly is the better player, is as good on STs, has 3-4 experience with the Jets and David Harris, and Grissom comes off more like a Jake Bequette draft pick, where BB holds onto the guy, no one can figure out why, and that's the end of if it. lmao

Reilly, I actually like. He's good in space and has decent speed.

Grissom? I can't name one good thing he does.

Reilly was concussed.

 

[long distance]

I'll be honest. BB cutting Reilly in favor of Grissom is a head scratcher to me. Reilly is the better player, is as good on STs, has 3-4 experience with the Jets and David Harris, and Grissom comes off more like a Jake Bequette draft pick, where BB holds onto the guy, no one can figure out why, and that's the end of if it. lmao

Reilly, I actually like. He's good in space and has decent speed.

Grissom? I can't name one good thing he does.

Reilly had what looked like a serious concussion. Grissom had “one good“ thing going for him at that point in time - he was available.

Bringing Reilly back to PS could mean 2 things: he could be good to go in which case i believe they will activate him OR they want him there for the futures contract..

In any case BB sure likes these situations of last minute activations..

 

[maineman209]

Hes been fine for WR4 and keeping him would not be the worst decision in the world but I don't think they are overly impressed with him. in 2018 the owe him a $450k roster bonus and $1m next year. Not a lot of money but I bet they will have the discussion about releasing him at some point..not saying they will.

It's an interesting decision point. Both are under contract thru 2018 for roughly $1.5M (cap hit) with the nearly same structure:

Dorsett = $1.09M salary + $450k roster bonus = $1.54M cap hit
Britt = $1.05M salary + $400k roster + $50k workout = $1.47M cap hit

Dorsett turned 25 on Jan 5th.
Britt turns 30 next September.

So, the coaches are probably balancing which of them may be able to contribute more immediately and through the playoffs, versus which may offer more long term potential. If Britt is blowing Dorsett away in practice, or if the coaches don't think that Dorsett offers significant developmental potential, then the choice is pretty obvious. Conversely, if they're about equally likely (or unlikely) to contribute significantly in the playoffs and Dorsett appears to have further developmental potential, the choice is also fairly obvious.

 

[IllegalContact]

He has functioned in this system at a high level. Britt and Dorsett have not had a season or an off season so reasonably have more to learn. Both have considerable up side, and will likely get an off season to develop. If MM is activated, which has to be a strong possibility or else why designate him, I doubt they release a WR. Either a player goes to IR (e.g., Gillislee) or an end of roster release (Grissom) is more likely in my view.

I'd understand if Mitchell did something on special teams, but on offense, you don't just show up after being out a long time and start executing when only 1 guy potentially (hogan) is there from the last time he played....not impossible, but......

 

[maineman209]

Grissom? I can't name one good thing he does.

Aside from being a core special teamer, playing 75%-85% of the ST snaps in each game for which he's active (for two years)?

Especially with Ebner on IR and Slater and King both having been nursing hammy injuries all season, Grissom's value is pretty clear.

 

[Chris Stevenson]

Reilly had what looked like a serious concussion. Grissom had “one good“ thing going for him at that point in time - he was available.

Bringing Reilly back to PS could mean 2 things: he could be good to go in which case i believe they will activate him OR they want him there for the futures contract..

In any case BB sure likes these situations of last minute activations..

I agree, but why risk losing a known commodity as a true 3-4 LB, when you already lost Hightower and McClellin? Grissom has been on the PS before and no one has ever clipped him because he sort of sucks. He looks like a 4-3 DE subrusher to me, and always has.

I am not saying Reilly is great or anything, but he's better than Grissom.

 

[Chris Stevenson]

Aside from being a core special teamer, playing 75%-85% of the ST snaps in each game for which he's active (for two years)?

Especially with Ebner on IR and Slater and King both having been nursing hammy injuries all season, Grissom's value is pretty clear.

Ok, but why was he on the PS earlier this year if he is so good on STs? Does ever make a tackle? I don't see it.

I see tons of Slater, Jon Jones and Brandon King making tackles and playing so well on those units, but not Grissom.

Like I said, Reilly is better than Grissom on STs, IMO.

 

[Chris Stevenson]

Reilly was concussed.

Right, but why didn't BB demote Grissom to the PS when Reilly was re-signed?

Clearly, BB thinks Grissom is needed more and he's the man, but I am not seeing it.

 

[maineman209]

Point is that there are only so many reps you get each practice with your QB1 that are semi-serious. Just by splitting those handful of reps between the two already creates the question for me.

I'm not sure what else they can do, though. It seems to me that, if Britt had been picking up the system and the playbook with sufficient speed, they might not have bothered bringing Mitchell back to practice in the first place. They need to evaluate them both somehow.

 

[scott99]

If I were a betting man, I’d bet Mitchell won’t play this weekend. I know you can’t save anything, have to go all in, one game season and all. But I have a feeling B.B. feels he can win this game without Mitchell. If Hogan is 100% back, I would guess the first time we see Mitchell is next season.

 

[RobertWeathers]

It's an interesting decision point. Both are under contract thru 2018 for roughly $1.5M (cap hit) with the nearly same structure:

Dorsett = $1.09M salary + $450k roster bonus = $1.54M cap hit
Britt = $1.05M salary + $400k roster + $50k workout = $1.47M cap hit

Dorsett turned 25 on Jan 5th.
Britt turns 30 next September.

So, the coaches are probably balancing which of them may be able to contribute more immediately and through the playoffs, versus which may offer more long term potential. If Britt is blowing Dorsett away in practice, or if the coaches don't think that Dorsett offers significant developmental potential, then the choice is pretty obvious. Conversely, if they're about equally likely (or unlikely) to contribute significantly in the playoffs and Dorsett appears to have further developmental potential, the choice is also fairly obvious.

Yea I think the wise decision is to pay Dorsett the $450k and let him win the job in camp. Same goes for Britt.

 

[GorBelSer]

If Mitchell does not play this weekend, then he is out for the season. DR against the Titans is the game where he could shake off rust, no way Belichick lets unprepared player go out against the Steelers or in the SB.

 

[maineman209]

Ok, but why was he on the PS earlier this year if he is so good on STs?

Grissom is one of a couple-three players on the roster who's a sure bet to clear waivers so that he can be re-signed to the PS (there's actually considerable value to that). For the first two weeks of the season, he was waived to the PS so that the Pats could keep a couple injured players on the active roster after cutdowns to make them eligible for IR-return. He was waived back to the PS when Bennett was claimed from the Packers (and while Slater, Ebner and King were all healthy). He was promoted again as soon as Ebner was injured.

Does ever make a tackle? I don't see it.

I see tons of Slater, Jon Jones and Brandon King making tackles and playing so well on those units, but not Grissom.

There are a lot of different specific jobs on ST units that all need to be done well. Not all of them involve being the first down the field to make a tackle.

Like I said, Reilly is better than Grissom on STs, IMO.

At what specific job(s), and based on what specific ST expertise, aside from being able to read tackle stats?

I'm a bit surprised that you appear not to understand these things.

 

[Mack Herron]

I'd understand if Mitchell did something on special teams, but on offense, you don't just show up after being out a long time and start executing when only 1 guy potentially (hogan) is there from the last time he played....not impossible, but......

Well we are just speculating but Britt, with zero experience in the system, played after a handful of practices. I think that MM with 2 weeks of practices, 2 training camps, and a successful season with Brady could give more than Britt. For the same reasons, he could also offer more than Dorsett. Anything is possible, but I do not think BB designated him just to take some practice snaps. And with a couple of games under his belt, who knows what he might offer for the SB...